Warm Up With a Hot Hopper

by LeNell Camacho Santa Ana

on 11/29/13 at 05:00 PM

You mention drinking a grasshopper, and I immediately recall the beginnings of my bartending career many moons ago with clients proudly ordering the chocolate-and-mint flavored drink after dinner. I remember many New York nights ending an evening with out-of-town guests at the now defunct Howard Johnson in Times Square with rounds of grasshoppers ordered from paper placemats.

And then there's also the joke. A grasshopper walks into a bar and the bartender exclaims, "Hey! We got a drink here named after you!" The grasshopper replies, "You gotta drink called Irving?"

New York's East Village recently celebrated the opening of a new bar called the Golden Cadillac where the drinks that might have been made fun of the last few years by stiff mixologists are taking center stage by professional bartenders who understand that making sure customers are having a good time is more important than reciting ancient drink recipes. Drinks like the Grasshopper get their due respect after years of malignment from waxed mustachioed barmen. New Orleans barwoman Abigail Gullo heard that the Golden Cadillac was serving a hot version of the Grasshopper and decided to toast their grand opening with her own version at the SoBou bar in the French Quarter where she serves as Head Bar Chef. The cold, traditional Grasshopper recipe is often equal parts chocolate liqueur, mint liqueur, and cream served up. She played up the original and added a cherry chocolate whipped cream topping resulting in a perfect holiday winter warmer.

Warm a mug with hot water. Place a tin filled with crème de menthe and crème de cacao in the mug with the hot water to the liqueurs warm as well. Steam some milk using your espresso wand if you are so lucky to have on hand. If not, best thing you may be able to do to froth it up is grab your french press and aerate some warmed milk to get some frothiness. Dump the hot water and pour the warm liqueurs into the hot mug and top with steamed, frothy milk.

To best whip the cream, chill a whisk and a metal bowl. Add the crème de cacao, cherry syrup, and vanilla to the cream and whisk until fluffy. Pour the cherry chocolate cream over the frothy milk in the mug and grate dark chocolate over the whole thing.